Battencian Heralds
The Battencian Heralds are a Loyalist 24th Founding Chapter of the Adeptus Astartes whom are descended from the proud lineage of the Ultramarines Chapter. The Chapter is known for its mastery of the Codex Astarte's myriad forms of war, specializing in rapid deployment and maneuver tactics, as well as ensuring these forces remain properly supported by heavier bases of fire. In a long career spanning millennia, the Chapter has known war on a million battlefields, in the defense of their home Zylos subsector and beyond, fighting in campaigns across the Imperium for the glory of the Emperor, and of mankind. Chapter History The Battencian Heralds were founded during the 24th founding of the mid Fortieth Millennium. The planet of Battencia was chosen to host a Chapter due to its central location within the Zylos Sector, which Imperial Censors determined to be of suitable risk to warrant the presence of a Chapter homeworld. The Zylos Sector’s defenses had been far too long neglected by the wider Imperium, thanks largely to the lack of any wide-scale existential threat to its worlds existing in the near vicinity. As the odds of invasion seemed more and more likely, as well as, it’s said, a word of caution towards the Sector appeared in the Emperor’s Tarot, a Chapter was determined necessary to anchor the sector’s defenses, and to, if nothing else, continue additional Astartes to the Imperium’s galaxy-wide war effort. Notable Campaigns The Battencian Sieges (350-390.M40) The Battencian Sieges was the baptism of fire for the Battencian Heralds Chapter. A minor Warp Rift opened in the Zylos Sub-sector and a large Force of Chaos, lead by the vile Word Bearers and Thousand Sons Traitor Legions, attacked the sub-sector. After 30 years of war, and some initial victories, the Chaotic forces brutally beat the Imperials, and split up. The Word Bearers laid siege to Battencia, and the Thousand Sons besieged Estrillon, the homeworld of the Angels Tempestus. The Siege of Battencia lasted for five years, and after the final Chaotic assaults were broken and the besieging forces annihilated, the battered Heralds took to the Warp, arriving just in time, alongside the Angels Tempestus reinforcements, to relieve Estrillon. The war's final five years were spent chasing down the Heretics, and annihilating the Chaos cults left behind by the Word Bearers wherever they could be found. The Angels Tempestus disagreed with the Ordo Hereticus' methods of mass purging to get rid of these cults, and an intense diplomatic situation ensued. The Heralds were divided on what to do, but after Kyudor Albexus intervened, they began to aid in evacuating innocent civilians facing the Inquisition's wrath. Tensions have since cooled, especially with the ascension of a former Inquisitorial Acolyte to the rank of Chapter Master. The Salvation Campaign (015-020.M42) A few years after the formation of the Great Rift, Imperial forces in the Asteria Sector noticed a weakness in it near their home system. So, they sent out a call for Imperial aid to breach through the Great Rift and establish a safe route to the rest of the Imperium. This call reached the Zylos Sub-sector, and the Battencian Heralds and the Angels Tempestus responded, leading a force that represented the combined might of the subsector. The Allied Fleets met up in the Abean System in 015.M42. The Adeptus Mechanicus began to set up a series of space stations to provide logistical support to the expedition. They got as many psykers as they could together, under the joint lead of the Libarius of the Battencian Heralds and Penitent Knights. It took three days for them to pass through the veil of the Great Rift, and many died in the attempt, but eventually the cloud of the rift was lifted and the Imperial forces could see their goal. The Great Rift was being projected by a Daemon World of Tzeentch, aptly named "Roadblock" by Ajax Belletores. It's destruction could make the rift weak enough to be safely passable. Resolving to destroy this planet, the Imperial fleet entered the Warp. Enroute to Roadblock, however, the Harbingers of Light, which had been hosting a war council of the allied leaders, had a Gellar Field flicker, and the ship was boarded. It was only through extremely fierce close quarters fighting that the Daemons and Heretic Astartes of Tzeentch were cleared from its corridors. When the Harbingers of Light finally arrived, the Battle of Roadblock began. A Chaotic Fleet defended the planet, and they had to be driven off. Several ships possessed cyclonic torpedoes, and the objective was to get into a firing position and destroy the planet. The fleet formed a 'Line Ahead' formation and launched strike craft. The Heretics tried to perform hit-and-run attacks as the line formed, but the line held, dispersing the Chaos fleet with intense volleys.The lines snaked towards the planet, moving perfectly in a full line until they closed to range. Volleys tore into the heretical fleet as the two forces made passes. The Imperials took a pounding, but it was dwarfed by the one they inflicted. The Chaos fleet wasn't really prepared to face such a substantial force. As the strike craft made their run, the Angels Tempestus' contingent broke off, and the Talon of Estrillon lined up its prow with Roadblock and fired a cyclonic torpedo. It was a direct hit, and the planet was shattered. Every psyker in the force, and those in a considerable radius, felt the Warp shift as the Rift weakened. Upon the ruins of Roadblock, another great station was constructed. This station was christened Salvation, as it would be the Salvation of those who sought to traverse the Rift and cross between the two halves of the Imperium. There were several still Chaotic systems directly within the bridge, and they could heavily limit the mobility along it. They had to be purged if Rift was to be traversable. The Imperials split their forces, and with relative ease accomplished this task, stabilizing the Rift Bridge and providing one of the few vital passages between the Segmentum Obscurus and Segmentum Solar. Homeworld Battencia is an earth-like civilized planet located in the Battencia System, the capital of the Zylos sub-sector, located within the Segmentum Obscurus. It has several incredibly harsh climates, including an equitorial rainforest concentrated on several tropical islands, a mountainous Northern Tundra, and deep forests that host a variety of incredibly dangerous predators, most notably the Chimera from which the Chapter derives its symbol. Planet History The Planet of Battencia was first discovered by humanity during the Dark Age of Technology. The planet was colonized and blossomed into a successful colony world. Once Old Night fell and the Age of Strife began, the Planetary Governor limited Warp travel to the system's immediate neighbors. Realizing that contact had been lost with Terra, the Battencia system centralized and annexed its neighbors, carving out its own empire. Millennia later, during the Great Crusade, an Expeditionary Fleet under the Primarch Sanguinius arrived at the Battencia system. After 3 days of negotiations, the Battencians agreed to embrace the Imperium. Throughout the next Millennium, Battencia became a prosperous Imperial system, and a neighboring planet, Epipolae, became an Adeptus Mechanicus Forge World. When the Imperium descended into the darkness of the Horus Heresy, the Battencia system stayed loyal, ramping up its war production to help arm the Imperium to fight its greatest battle. Gene-seed The Battencian Heralds are descendants of the Ultramarines, and thus carry the gene-seed of the Primarch Roboute Guilliman. Recruitment The Battencian Heralds take Neophytes from the Battencia systems and its neighbours in the Zylos subsector. Recruits are taken voluntarily into the Chapter, with children being interviewed and examined by Chapter serfs to determine if they have the physical and emotional strength to make it within the chapter. Children as young as five years of age and as old as ten years of age are accepted into the Chapter. Children are put through a training regimen that gets progressively tougher as they grow. The earlier stages of training consists of typical things like forced marches, drill, and an intense training course within the Chapter’s Fortress Monastery .During this phase, the recruits will be put into training companies of 30. At the age of 10 or after 18 months of training, the Neophyte will be forced to undergo a trial. This is a place where the Heralds are different from many other Chapters, where normally the aspirant has to pass a trial to even begin training. Sometimes Aspirant on Aspirant duels will be practiced, to first blood or to a yield, but this is uncommon and totally at the discretion of the official overseeing that particular batch of recruitment, be it a high-ranking Serf or a full Battle Brother. The trial can vary, and some older Aspriants are given their choice of a challenge. Sometimes, the Aspriant will be dropped into the forests of Eador, the underhive of Chiraq, the ash wastes of Triton, the abandoned mines of Epipolae, or a number of other hostile locations around the Zylos subsector, where they will either have to survive a set amount of time or complete another objective, which could include assassinating a certain target, traveling a great distance over unfamiliar terrain, or destabilizing or eliminating an organization by any means. Sometimes they will have to face a Battle Brother in melee combat, with those who hold well being accepted regardless of failure, though this is probably the least common of all Trials the Heralds administer. It is only after they complete one of these trials and are judged successful by the Chapter that their augmentation begins. As the Neophytes mature and begin the augmentation process, the rigors of their training increases further. Forced marches become longer, and recruits are pushed to complete the course faster and faster. Recruits will be sent out on long range patrols, either to test their endurance and survival skills, or as a further test, allowing them to act as Peacekeepers among the local population and seeing how they manage. These patrols are all done under the watchful eye of a Battle Brother, and they can be done off world. The island of Guranya, near Battencia’s equator, is a common spot for these, being an inhospitable, dense jungle pretty much all over the island. Also around this time, they begin their advanced combat training. Target shooting and sparring with dummy melee weapons was a common occurrence throughout the first stage of the training, but now it intensifies, with them running training exercises all around Battencia in different climates and states. Battlefield tactics are instructed by the Brothers set to watch over the training, and Recruits’ task vary, from having squad-squad firefights with simulated ammunition, to having to engage targets under battlefield conditions. Many of these training exercises are live fire, and a premium is put on realism, especially as the training advances further. There was one occurrence recorded around 550.M41 where a squad of Neophytes conducting a training exercise happened upon a Tau patrol that had snuck onto the planet. As they began to receive fire, the Neophytes reacted as they had been trained to and managed to wipe out the patrol without realizing that it wasn’t part of the exercise. Once all of the gene-seed organs save the Black Carapace have been installed, the Recruits have to pass yet another challenge. Considered the end of their training, the challenge can occur on Battencia or in another world. It is a homogeneity of several of their initial Trials. The recruits will have to navigate and move a long way over difficult terrain, either in the wilderness, a hive city, or other such locations. After this trek, which could be interrupted by other challenges en route rigged by the Chapter, they will have to complete a preset objective. This usually involves killing a Xenos warrior, major predator, or other such a foe. Usually, they will be issued their Bolter before this challenge, and be allowed to employ it in the struggle. Sometimes, they will only have their own body, honed to a fine edge by this point from years of training and what they can craft during their trek. Upon the successful completion of this challenge by a batch of recruits, a great ceremony will be held in the Fortress-Monastery where they are issued with Scout Armor and kit and officially declared Combat Scouts of the Battencian Heralds. The survivors of the initial training Companies of 30, which would be replenished by new recruits if numbers dropped below 10, would be divided into Squads of 10, ready to be sent out into the Galaxy attached to various Heralds detachments and formed into scratch companies by the local commander for use in action. Command of the squad can vary. Sometimes, a more experienced Scout will be moved out of his squad and into the new one as Sergeant, but usually a Sergeant will be picked from the Squad, with interviews being conducted to determine which of the Scouts is more suitable for command. Chapter Organisation Headquarters Companies Combat Doctrine The Battencian Heralds’ primary focus is fire and maneuver tactics. It is common for their tactical squads to break into two five man Combat Squads, which then take turn laying suppressing fire upon the enemy and manoeuvring to destroy them. Devastators are also quite valuable in providing this fire, as well as providing anti-armor support. They have a degree of skill in siege warfare as well, where their ability to provide overwhelming fire becomes extremely useful. With the introduction of Primaris marines into the chapter, they have found their own niches within this doctrine. Intercessors and Hellblasters largely operate alongside their Astartes counterparts in the Tactical and Devastator squads. Reivers and Infiltrators are usually used to add another layer to the assault, attacking the enemy’s back lines while the main body pour fire on the front, allowing maneuver elements the best possible chance of getting in position to destroy the enemy. These infantry formations ride into battle in the Chapter’s armored vehicles. Most of their Tactical squads ride in Razorbacks, with two provided for each squad’s two Combat Teams. The Heralds prefer the Razorback due to its superior ability to stay at the front after it has dropped off its Astartes to provide fire support for the infantry. Rhinos are saved for Devastator squads that are not expected to come under direct fire. They also like to employ their aircraft, especially Thunderhawk gunships, as close air support, as well as to ferry troops swiftly across the battlefield. Deathwatch Service The Battencian Heralds have had a rocky relationship with the Inquisition, but still they send their Brothers to serve in the Deathwatch. Barus Stroikos, current Third Company Captain, is perhaps the most famous of the Heralds to have served with them. In the aftermath of the Battencian Sieges, there was an influx of Heralds who were seasoned veterans of that conflict. This did a lot to lessen the blow to their relations with the Inquisition taken during the Scouring of Zylos. Notable Members Barus Stroikos (Born 305.M41) Captain of the Third Company, Barus is the senior Marine in the chapter after the Chapter Master. Barus was born on Battencia itself, and joined the Chapter at the age of 8. He trained alongside Ajax Belletores, with the two having shared a squad since their time in the Scouts Battalion, having fought alongside each other for centuries. In the mid 41st Millennium, he was transferred to Third Company after they took considerable losses in a campaign against an Ork WAAAGH. By the present day, he is the Captain of Third Company. In battle, he wears the Chapter’s suit of Tartaros Terminator armor, carrying a variety of heavy weapons to go with it. Chapter Appearance Chapter Colours The Battencian Heralds primarily wear red coloured power armour with the exception of the backpack, shoulder armorial insets and belt, which are ultramarine blue. The shoulder pauldron trim is white in colour. The white coloured squad specialty markings (Tactical, Devastator, Assault and Veteran), which indicates an individual battle-brother's assigned combat specialty, are stenciled on the right shoulder armorial. A small white Roman numeral stenciled upon the right shoulder armorial inset, indicates squad assignment. A white Roman numeral stenciled upon the left poelyn (knee guard) indicates company assignment. Chapter Badge The Battencian Heralds' Chapter icon depicts a Chimera, a mythical creature from ancient Earth mythology. This formidable beast is both majestic but vicious, and is an apex predator native to Battencia. Chapter Fleet The Battencian Heralds possess a sizable fleet under the command of their Master of the Fleet, Themistocles Roth. They possess three Battle Barges, two of which, The Emperor's Fury and The Angel's Hammer are permanent elements of the Chapter Fleet, while the Harbinger of Light serves as Ajax Belletores' personal flagship. Five Strike Cruisers are attached to the standing fleet, and each Company has one. The Escort craft are divided between various squadrons and Company fleets. The Battencian Heralds Standing Fleet also possesses the Guardians of the Fleet, a 500 man force to act as Marines aboard the Heralds ships. Relations Allies The Angels Tempestus The Astral Warriors The Penitent Knights The Fists of the Gorgon The Templarii Scientae Enemies Notable Quotes Feel free to add your own By the Battencian Heralds Feel free to add your own About the Battencian Heralds Category:Imperium Category:Space Marine Chapters Category:Space Marines Category:Ultramarines Successors Category:24th Founding